Charges dropped in DUI death case for lack of evidence

Published: Wednesday, July 17, 2013 at 3:54 p.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, July 17, 2013 at 3:54 p.m.

Growing up, Bronson Robert McCabe was afraid of the dark. So when his mother, Peggy Sweet, started tending to a roadside memorial near where he was killed in a 2009 car accident, she made sure to hang two battery-operated angels holding lanterns that light the area at night.

"He was loved," Sweet said. She visits the memorial often and can usually spot something new: a teddy bear, magazine, even a jar of pickles. Just people letting her know that her son is still remembered.

Anthony Quirello was set to stand trial next week for DUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide in the crash that killed McCabe. But instead, he has been released from the Marion County Jail after the state dropped the charges.

"It was an accident," Sweet said. "Him (Quirello) and Bronson were friends. But just like Bronson, there's a consequence for your actions."

She recalled her son's funeral, which drew more than 500 people. She remembered seeing the procession stretch for a mile and a half.

"You couldn't see anything but cars," Sweet said. "It was phenomenal." She described her son as outgoing, goofy and willing to help others.

Quirello, 30, was arrested in March 2012, more than two years after the one-vehicle crash killed McCabe, 21, of Ocklawaha.

In addition to the manslaughter and homicide charges, Quirello was charged with two counts of driving under the influence-property damage.

The State Attorney's Office dropped the charges due to a lack of "substantial competent evidence," according to court records.

At 3:20 a.m. on Oct. 6, 2009, Quirello, McCabe and possibly another man were driving in a 2003 Jaguar. The vehicle was traveling at 89 mph in a 35 mph zone on Southeast 147th Street near where it intersects Southeast 71st Court, according to court records.

The vehicle jumped a set of railroad tracks, hit a stop sign, struck a utility pole and then crashed into a tree.

When emergency workers arrived, McCabe was found in the passenger seat and Quirello was found outside the driver's door. Quirello told officials a third man — who was not present at that time — had been involved.

McCabe was dead at the scene. Quirello was taken to UF Health Shands Hospital in Gainesville. A search of the area did not produce any evidence of a third man. There were no witnesses to the crash.

Florida Department of Law Enforcement test results indicate Quirello's blood-alcohol level about two hours after the crash was 0.057. In Florida, a driver is presumed impaired if his or her BAC is 0.08 or greater.

Test results found the victim's DNA on the steering wheel, driver's seat belt, and both the passenger and driver air bags. The defendant's DNA was located on the interior driver's door handle.

A limited number of items can be sent for testing at a given time, which could have accounted for the delay in Quirello's arrest, according to the State Attorney's Office.

During their investigation, authorities spoke to the victim's roommates, who were described as uncooperative. Felony Johnson did give a statement to law enforcement, saying that, on the night of the fatal crash, she witnessed Quirello driving the vehicle, which also contained McCabe and another person named "Roxy."

She told authorities that all three appeared to be intoxicated, and she had heard Quirello had told authorities another man had been responsible for the accident.

She was the only witness who could place Quirello as the driver of the vehicle near the time of the crash, authorities said.

But Johnson later recanted her statement, telling officials she did not see who had been in the vehicle or who was driving.

When asked about her previous statements, Johnson said "she was upset about the death of the victim and felt that the defendant must be responsible since he survived the crash, and that is why she blamed him during her previous statement," according to court records.

"Since the state has insufficient evidence at this time to place the defendant behind the wheel of the vehicle at the time of the crash, the state can not proceed to trial in good faith," according to a prosecutor's memo filed with the court.

After Johnson recanted, the only other evidence that linked Quirello to the scene was his DNA on the door handle. But it is not possible to determine whether the DNA was placed there before, during or after the crash.

<p>Growing up, Bronson Robert McCabe was afraid of the dark. So when his mother, Peggy Sweet, started tending to a roadside memorial near where he was killed in a 2009 car accident, she made sure to hang two battery-operated angels holding lanterns that light the area at night.</p><p>"He was loved," Sweet said. She visits the memorial often and can usually spot something new: a teddy bear, magazine, even a jar of pickles. Just people letting her know that her son is still remembered.</p><p>Anthony Quirello was set to stand trial next week for DUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide in the crash that killed McCabe. But instead, he has been released from the Marion County Jail after the state dropped the charges.</p><p>"It was an accident," Sweet said. "Him (Quirello) and Bronson were friends. But just like Bronson, there's a consequence for your actions."</p><p>She recalled her son's funeral, which drew more than 500 people. She remembered seeing the procession stretch for a mile and a half.</p><p>"You couldn't see anything but cars," Sweet said. "It was phenomenal." She described her son as outgoing, goofy and willing to help others.</p><p>Quirello, 30, was arrested in March 2012, more than two years after the one-vehicle crash killed McCabe, 21, of Ocklawaha.</p><p>In addition to the manslaughter and homicide charges, Quirello was charged with two counts of driving under the influence-property damage.</p><p>The State Attorney's Office dropped the charges due to a lack of "substantial competent evidence," according to court records.</p><p>At 3:20 a.m. on Oct. 6, 2009, Quirello, McCabe and possibly another man were driving in a 2003 Jaguar. The vehicle was traveling at 89 mph in a 35 mph zone on Southeast 147th Street near where it intersects Southeast 71st Court, according to court records.</p><p>The vehicle jumped a set of railroad tracks, hit a stop sign, struck a utility pole and then crashed into a tree.</p><p>When emergency workers arrived, McCabe was found in the passenger seat and Quirello was found outside the driver's door. Quirello told officials a third man — who was not present at that time — had been involved.</p><p>McCabe was dead at the scene. Quirello was taken to UF Health Shands Hospital in Gainesville. A search of the area did not produce any evidence of a third man. There were no witnesses to the crash.</p><p>Florida Department of Law Enforcement test results indicate Quirello's blood-alcohol level about two hours after the crash was 0.057. In Florida, a driver is presumed impaired if his or her BAC is 0.08 or greater.</p><p>Test results found the victim's DNA on the steering wheel, driver's seat belt, and both the passenger and driver air bags. The defendant's DNA was located on the interior driver's door handle.</p><p>A limited number of items can be sent for testing at a given time, which could have accounted for the delay in Quirello's arrest, according to the State Attorney's Office.</p><p>During their investigation, authorities spoke to the victim's roommates, who were described as uncooperative. Felony Johnson did give a statement to law enforcement, saying that, on the night of the fatal crash, she witnessed Quirello driving the vehicle, which also contained McCabe and another person named "Roxy."</p><p>She told authorities that all three appeared to be intoxicated, and she had heard Quirello had told authorities another man had been responsible for the accident.</p><p>She was the only witness who could place Quirello as the driver of the vehicle near the time of the crash, authorities said.</p><p>But Johnson later recanted her statement, telling officials she did not see who had been in the vehicle or who was driving.</p><p>When asked about her previous statements, Johnson said "she was upset about the death of the victim and felt that the defendant must be responsible since he survived the crash, and that is why she blamed him during her previous statement," according to court records.</p><p>"Since the state has insufficient evidence at this time to place the defendant behind the wheel of the vehicle at the time of the crash, the state can not proceed to trial in good faith," according to a prosecutor's memo filed with the court.</p><p>After Johnson recanted, the only other evidence that linked Quirello to the scene was his DNA on the door handle. But it is not possible to determine whether the DNA was placed there before, during or after the crash.</p><p>Jail records show Quirello has been arrested 13 times since 2002.</p><p><i>Contact April Warren at 867-4065 or april.warren@ocala.com.</i></p>